Attachment for gas producers



A. L. GALUSHA.

ATTACHMENT FOR GAS PRODUCERS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG-2!. 1920.

1,409,941 Patented Mar. 21, 1922.

IFYENTOR smear 1.. carnage, or sneaon, uassacnusms.

ATTACHMENT GAS PRODUCERS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed August 21, 1920. Serial No. 405,077. 7

To allwhomitmmy concern:

Be it known that I, ALBERT L. GA'LUSHA, a citizen of the United States,re idin at Sharon, in the county-of Norfolk and tate of Massachusetts,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Attachments for GasProducers, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription.

The invention which is the subject of my present application for LettersPatent per-- tains to that class of apparatus known as gas producers, inwhich -a gas for power or other purposes is obtained by passing, eitherby suction or pressure, a mixtureof air and. steam throu h anincandescent bed'of ignited fuel. y invention is an improvement in suchapparatus, the primary purpose of which is to regulate-the amount'orquantity of such mixture so that it will always be in substantiallyexact proportion to the amount of gas required and more especially sothat the, relative proportions, of air and steam will remain the sameregardless of changes in the rate of gas production.

In. this class of apparatus it is essential, in order to obtain gas ofuniform quality, that the relative proportions of steam and air remainalways the same. In other words, if the apparatus-be arranged oradjusted for delivering a given flow of gas, conditions may bepermanently established for supplying the proper amount of air and steamfor producing such flow, butshould twice as much gas be suddenly wanted,twice as much air and twice as much steam should be immediately suppliedto the producer. On the other hand, any less amount of gas being wantedthe volume of air and steam actually delivered to the ash pit of theproducer should be at once reduced in the same proportion.

Means heretofore devisedor proposed for controlling the steam supplyfrom a boiler for this pur ose'have proved unsatisfactory. It may be eected by hand control of steam valves, but this is manifestlyuncommercial and unsatisfactory, particularly when the demand for gasvaries. On the other hand, when mechanical devices more or lessautomatic in their nature are employed for controllin the throttle valveit has been found that t ey cannot be wholly relied upon. Valves workharder at one time than at another. They frequently stick, while boilerpressure is subject to variations, and all of these factors contributeto preventing the Patented Mar. '21, 1922'.

obtain ingot thedesired result, the iinanance ofthe'relative steamco'nstant; s

In order to avoidthese difficulties I have devised an apparatus whichoperates on a proportionsof airand new rinciple and which isdistlnguished by' the ollowing characteristics:

.-First, the steam supply is maintained at constant pressure. v

Second, a-constant uniform and unchanging flow of steam and air in thecorrect relative proportions and in volume sufficient to meet themaximum gas demand on the producer is provided for. i

Third, a vent to the atmosphere is provided of such character that ittakes care of all excess pressure, due to excess of air. or

steam and shunts such excess from the ash :pit when the producer islightly loaded.

I have found it possible to build an apparatus having these functionswithout those moving parts which, in previous devices, have proved sounreliable, and this apparatus is illustrated in the accompanyingdrawing-to which reference is now made for purposes of illustration.This drawing is a view; mainly in vertical central section of theimprovement shown applied to any proper form of gas producer. 7.

The producer is indicated merely by the part 1, which may be the ash pitto which the regulator is attached. The latter-comprises a dry steampipe 2 from any suitable.

boiler or other source of steam, the pressure of which may vary withinreasonably wide limits, as, for example, from lbs. to 130 lbs. In order,however, to secure a constant pressure a constant pressure reducingvalve 3 isinstalled in this pipe, from which the steam issues intothejpipe 4, at, for instance, 14 lbs. constant pressure at all times.

The extension of pipe I contains a starting and stopping valve 6, whichis wide open when the producer-is operating and closed tight when it isnot in use, and a throttle valve 5 with fixed opening which, in

connection with the constant pressure in pipe 4, gives a uniform andunvaryin flow of steam at all times through the pipe 7. The valve 5 isset to permit the maximum amount of steam to flow for the largest loadthe producer will carry during any glven period.

The-pi e 7 is extended in a vert1c al part into 9. cy indrical'chamber8, where it 1s secured to a bracket or arm 9.. It is threaded andcarries a valve plate 10, which is adjustable thereon to vary thepassage for air down into the chamber 8, and is provided with check nuts11 to secure the plate in adj usted position.

To the pipe 7, near its open end, is secured a bracket 12 carryin aconical valve 13 which may be adi'uste to vary the orifice oi said pi e.The c oser this cone s brought to the en of the pipe the more the streamof issuing steam is spread and the higher its velocity. This steam acts,therefore, to draw with it more or less .air through the valvecontrolledtop of the chamber and the relative pro rtlons of steam to airare thus regulate The mixture of the steam and an is eflected in thechamber 8, and passes from such chamber to the ash pit of the producer,whence it is caused to pass up through the incandescent bed of fue toproduce the gas.

The horizontal chamber 14, which connects with the ash pit, has itsopposite end provided with a balanced valve 15, and leads into a tube orchamber 16 o n to the atmosphere, generally outside t e building con--taining' the producer. This valve is preferhinged at 17, and carriesad'ustable abl wel ghts 18 to which access may be ad for purposes ofad'ustment,b removing a cover 20 in the wal of the tu or chamber 16. Theparts above described are all that are essential to the invention.

The operation of the device is manifest from the above description. Whenit is to be used the pressure r lating and reducing valve 3 is set to'el the desired and constant pressure. e valve 5 is set to permit a flowof steam-suflicient to take care of the largest demand for gas that willbe required during a given period. The clearance between the cone 13 andthe end of pi e 7 is determined and-the weights 18 are a justed to givethe desired air injection and the proper pressure at the outlet 21 intothe ash pita The opening into the chamber '8 is also adjusted to givethe correct proportion of air to the steam that is used.

These adjustments are made once for all; In operation the volume ofmixed air and steam passing to the ash pit is always in prortion to thegas taken off and used. If ess gas is required the pressure in chamber 8forces the excess of mixture out through the valve 15 to the atmospherewhile an increased amount of gas takes more of this mixture up from theash pit.

In practice the valve 15 may be set to afford an exit of constant area,but when-the producer is not-in use it is desirable to close this valvein order that air may not find its way to the bed of fuel and thusburning and wasting it.

This device constitutes a most efiicient and I operation on t racticablemeans of,control for gas proucers. It has few parts, none of which needbe movable in the ordinary sense of that term. It is entirely automaticin its action and requires no close attention or change of ad'ustment.

llVhat' I claim as my invention is:

1. The combination with a gas producer of a chamber through which amixture oi steam and air is admitted to the ash pit, and means forregulating the volume of such mixture flowin to the ash pit dependentfor fie pressure above that of the atmoslphere in said chamber.

2. he combination with a gas producer of a chamber through which amixture of steam and air is admitted to the ash pit, said chamber havingtwo outlets, one for the passage of the mixture to the ash pit, and theot er to the atmosphere, and an automatic valve controlling the lastnamed outlet, operatedby the pressure in the ash pitabove that of theatmosphere, whereby the volume of the mixture supplied to the ash pit isva-.

'ried in accordance with the demand for gas.

3. The combination with a gas producer, of means for supplying steamthereto at a constant and uniform pressure, means for mixing with thesteam a definite proportion of air and means for regulating the volumeof the mixture entering the producer, by the pressure above that of theatmosphere at the point where the said mixture enters the producer.

4. The combination with a gas producer, of means for varying the volumeof admitted steam and air inacco-rdance with the amount of gas producedand used, comprising means for maintainin a constant pressure of thesteam, means or mixing therewith a fixed proportion of air and means forshunting to the atmosphere all excess of mixture not required for thevolume of gas produced.

5. The combination with a gas producer having a free relief opening tothe atmosphere from the ash pit'and means for preventing air fromentering the ash pit through said opening.

6. The combination with a gas producer, of means for supplying a mixtureof steam and air at constant pressure and uniform volume, means forregulating the proportion of such mixture which enters the producerdependent for operation on the pressure above that of the atmosphere atthe ash pit,

and means for varying or adjusting such ALBERT L. GALUSHA.

